I've been writing jokes for over three years, but for no real purpose other than to pass time at work. Rather than keep giving all these jokes away, I wondered what avenue I could go down.
Any advice greatly welcomed.
What now?
Ah this pereneal question.
But as you have already put yours up in critique and Sickipedia for feedback and they're well honed and funny. Ignore the advice to do that.
There is no easy route to selling jokes to anyone, trust me really there isn't selling them is an art in it's self.
The first and most obvious is get up on stage and tell them yourself.
Secondly blog and tweet like a dervish and hope someone pays attention to you, preferably lots of them.
NewsRevue, Treason Show, Newsjack, some magazines and other radio shows will buy jokes. Keep pumping away at the open slots on radio [snigger] and you maybe noticed.
Card companies buy gags, but that's terribly unpredictable and they prefer to work with people they know.
Write to everyone who might buy gags, from politicians to standup comics be nice, kiss ass. Then politely ask if they'll buy some of your jokes.
Or publish your own kindle and learn how to market it properly and produce it properly.
But there is no golden path, no easy route. Me I work mostly through my site and freelance sites but that certainly didn't happen over night.
Quote: sootyj @ 18th August 2014, 10:24 PM BSTAh this pereneal question.
But as you have already put yours up in critique and Sickipedia for feedback and they're well honed and funny. Ignore the advice to do that.
There is no easy route to selling jokes to anyone, trust me really there isn't selling them is an art in it's self.
The first and most obvious is get up on stage and tell them yourself.
Secondly blog and tweet like a dervish and hope someone pays attention to you, preferably lots of them.
NewsRevue, Treason Show, Newsjack, some magazines and other radio shows will buy jokes. Keep pumping away at the open slots on radio [snigger] and you maybe noticed.
Card companies buy gags, but that's terribly unpredictable and they prefer to work with people they know.
Write to everyone who might buy gags, from politicians to standup comics be nice, kiss ass. Then politely ask if they'll buy some of your jokes.
Or publish your own kindle and learn how to market it properly and produce it properly.
But there is no golden path, no easy route. Me I work mostly through my site and freelance sites but that certainly didn't happen over night.
Open spots on radio? Ignore my ignorance, but what would that entail? Cheers for the advice, Sooty.
That's something Newsjack, Watsons Windup when the BBC as part of it's remit to support new comedy [yup this does exist]. Will invite people to send in jokes, oneliners, sketches etc.
If I'm honest never worked for me. There's hundreds, possibly thousands of people trying for maybe 40 slots total a show.
But it's the best way to get noticed.
They're announced on the BBC Writers room, but they'll turn up on BCG soon enough.
But there's an old saying the harder you work, the luckier you get. Now about 5 years ago there was a little thing called the 118 118 joke service. Text Joke 118 get sent a joke.
I was one of the lead gag writers, I was actually one of the first 15 invited to write for it. Then one of the ones who got read first and in the end I earned a few grand out of it.
I got invited to write, because I'd been going to the London Comedy Writers meetings weekly for a year and had about 20 sketches read and was [this is the important bit] reliably, predictably, verifiably, reasonably funny. Then when I got the chance I sent 20 gags a day every day, again r/p/v. So I got my foot and my whole leg in the door.
The main rule of thumb is no one wants to read shit gags. It's depressing and potentially damaging to your rep. So people who want gags look for r/p/v funny. Don't just chase money chase the opportunities that seem just fun and interesting.
Also wedding speech companies, but like cards that's a long hard slog to get started.
Cheers for the reply Sooty. I'm pretty certain I'm reasonably funny and can construct a wide variety of jokes, so you've definitely given me food for thought!
Not to mention the bride after a gallon and a half of cheap champagne substitute.
Three years isn't really that long, Nick. May need a different avenue apart from just joke writing?